It seems like Mark Cuban has no patience for how America pays for healthcare. In a recent appearance at the Stanford University Department of Medicine, he laid out exactly how he thinks insurance companies are rigging the system—and leaving hospitals and doctors holding the bag.
Insurance Plans Work For Insurers, Not Providers
According to Cuban, it all starts with how insurance companies design their plans. Every year, they tweak things so premiums stay low, but out-of-pocket costs quietly increase. This pushes patients toward high-deductible health plans that look affordable on paper but become a disaster when someone actually gets sick.
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“Depending on what’s going on in the economy, those patients, particularly as they skew a little younger or a little poorer, take low-premium, high-deductible plans,” Cuban said. “Which is good for the insurance companies. You know who it’s not good for? You guys.”
By “you guys,” Cuban meant the doctors and hospitals who end up taking on the financial risk. If a patient can't pay the deductible, the insurer already got its money, but the provider hasn't. “You take on all that credit risk,” Cuban explained. “And you also take on the brand and reputational risk… Did you cause the problem? No.”
Doctors Pay Twice: Financially And Emotionally
Cuban pointed out that many patients are confused by their bills and blame the hospital, not the insurer. “When everybody talks about the $400 billion in unpaid medical debt, who gets the blame? You do,” he said. “And when the patient’s angry and looking at all these medical bills, who gets the blame?”
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He argued this creates a cascade of problems that go beyond money. Doctors feel rushed. Care feels transactional. And fewer people want to stay in the profession. Cuban said his goal is to bring simplicity and fairness back into the equation.
The Fix
One of Cuban’s solutions is direct contracting. Through his Cost Plus Wellness venture, he’s working with hospitals and doctors to create deals that skip insurance companies altogether. “We go to Stanford and say, ‘We know what happens in the relationship between you and the big insurance company,'” he said. “Why don’t you give us a better price?”
He said most hospitals lose 3% to 5% fighting insurance companies for payment and have to hire massive administrative teams just to handle all the red tape. Meanwhile, they also deal with delays like pre-authorizations that often aren’t about medical necessity but about how long the insurance company can hold onto the money and earn interest.
Cuban's Message
Cuban’s pitch to providers is simple: stop relying on insurance companies and work directly with employers and patients. Publish your prices. Make it easier to understand care costs. And push back on systems that are designed to extract value from you, not create it.
“If you really want to change the system, you do have the power to do these things,” Cuban said.
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